Page Ninety Seven
by vierblith
Summary: TezukaFuji, ficlet. Suppose Tezuka decides to study law after playing pro... [ketchupblood's prompt: page ninety seven]


**Page Ninety-Seven**  
Pairing: TezukaFuji  
Rating: G  
Disclaimer: Konomi-sensei made Fuji and Tezuka for each other. They're not mine.  
Warning: shounen ai

**A/N:** I just suck at titling, but that was ketchup's prompt, if anything. This is made for ketchupblood because she's been writing and publishing a lot lately and there seems to be a lack of TezuFujis. I feel hyper but sleepy after two cups of coffee. O.o

**oOo**

Fuji pressed his lips and let his head drop to the pillow. Frustrated, he clutched the bedsheets tightly in his fingers and he sullenly counted to five in his head. Finally, he heaved himself up and glanced up at the wall clock. Two-thirty. Folding his arms across his chest, Fuji glared at the empty half of the bed but eventually decided that Tezuka wouldn't suddenly materialize in it however long he gaped. Feeling a bit groggy, he climbed out of bed and walked out of the room.

Right across the hall, he caught a glimpse of Tezuka through the tiny crack on the door. Tezuka was bent over some text, reading. Frowning, Fuji made his way to the kitchen. He took a jar of tea leaves from the cupboard (Tezuka preferred it over coffee for reasons such as 'health' and 'growth') and began boiling tea over the stove.

For how many days Tezuka had been going on with only an average of three hours of sleep (mostly owing to the fact that Tezuka slept six to eight hours on weekends), Fuji had lost count. Whenever Fuji asked why, Tezuka would cursorily reply "exam" and Fuji always ended up wondering and murmuring to himself whether or not the exams ever had an end. Way back in college, Fuji could remember that he had exam weeks - where all exams would be crammed in. Thereafter, he'd have a few more weeks of freedom before launching into the hell weeks again. Apparently, however, law professors didn't have the same practicality that photography professors had: law professors liked to give exams every single day.

When the kettle gave a long, steamy whistle, Fuji bustled quickly to strain the tea into a cup. Without even bothering to wear a smile (he was feeling particularly grumpy and wasn't about to show Tezuka that he was falsely supportive of the latter's "voluntary insomnia"), he slowly headed for the room that Tezuka was occupying.. He placed the cup and saucer on top of the desk, purposely causing it to clank, and peered curiously over Tezuka's shoulder.

Tezuka had a neon green highlighter at hand and was pressing it down a page ninety-seven of a probably obscure, certainly thick copy of a law book. He didn't even look up when Fuji entered; instead, his eyes continued to scan down the page. He stopped midway and exchanged the neon green highlighter with a flesh one.

If Fuji weren't too displeased or if Tezuka had acknowledged him at all, he would have been amused by the neat, near obsessive method of studying that Tezuka had adopted. As it was, Fuji impatiently pushed the cup of tea closer to Tezuka and asked coldly, "What time did you arrive?" Yes, Tezuka was home when Fuji arrived but that was mainly because Fuji came late after a meeting for a major photo exhibit. Fuji suspected that Tezuka had overstayed at the university again, coaching the university's tennis team.

"Nine," Tezuka muttered, ignoring the steaming cup of dark tea. He placed the flesh marker on the desk and took a yellow one to highlight some of the text on the same page.

"Nine?" said Fuji, bemused. "Isn't that a bit late for tennis practice?"

"The eliminations will start soon," Tezuka replied without even a glance from his text. "We can't let our guard down."

Fuji sighed, exasperated. "You should get some rest," he said, taking the cup of tea and lifting it from the saucer, almost shoving it up Tezuka's nose. "You almost look as old as you sound." Fuji wasn't chuckling, and the joke was more than half-meant. True, Tezuka's expression didn't show signs of exhaustion, but dark circles were beginning to form around his eyes and Fuji heard that Tezuka was assigning an average of forty laps (Seigaku members usually had twenty) to each member of the university team.

Feeling a sting on his nose, Tezuka figured that Fuji wasn't going to leave him alone if he didn't drink the tea. Page ninety-seven could wait and Fuji couldn't. With a sigh of resignation, he took the cup in his hands and leaned back against the arm chair. He took a sip and shut his eyes, feeling the warmth of tea down his throat.

"You should sleep more often," Fuji said softly. His fingers removed Tezuka's glasses and began rubbing Tezuka's temples. "I heard sleep helps neurons regenerate for better memory. People who sleep actually get higher grades than those who don't."

Tezuka absently nodded as he felt Fuji's nimble fingers move down to his shoulders, gently kneading the constricted flesh.

Fuji finally let a smile grace his lips when Tezuka relaxed and began to breathe steadily. He reached for the alarm clock, knowing that his gesture wouldn't be appreciated if he "forgot" to set it again.

-owari- 

**A/N:**There are studies about exam results and sleep. It's scientifically true. And I do think that Tezuka's obsessive-compulsive like that. Reviews are loved. Updates are adored. (Update!!! I'm dying here!) I'm trying to work on OYIF18 but I'm currently stomped. Just… wait patiently. And update. Update.


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